The present invention relates to a new and distinct perennial Flax Lilly variety of Dianella tasmanica, which has been given the varietal denomination of ‘TR20’. Its market class is that of an ornamental grass-like plant. ‘TR20’ is intended for use in landscaping and as a decorative grass-like plant.
An application for plant breeders' rights for variety ‘TR20’ has been filed with the Australian Plant Breeders' Rights Office, and was first gazetted in the Plant Varieties Journal in October 2003 under Application No. 2003/290.
Parentage. The Dianella tasmanica variety ‘TR20’ was first discovered in October 1996 in an Australian nursery in the state of New South Wales after an extensive breeding program. The parent, ‘Southern Tablelands Ecotype’, (unpatented) is characterized by a weak expression of basal leaf sheath reddening and reddening of the midrib and not the leaf margin in winter.
In 1995, Dianella species were grown together in an open bed covering approximately 250 square meters of area. They were grown in groups of species and ecotypes including Dianella tasmanica collected from the Southern Tablelands area of Australia, and other regions. The other species present were longifolia, revoluta and caerulea. The plants were open pollinated with possible assisted pollination from general shaking of flower stems onto each other.
Seeds were collected and sown from the ‘Southern Tablelands’ plants in December 1995. Approximately 20,000 plants were grown. In August 1996, using the selection criteria of red basal leaf sheath colour and leaf redness, a single plant was identified as having a very red basal shoot and in wintertime a number of reddish leaves and red leaf margins. This plant was selected, potted into a 140 mm pot for further evaluation and named ‘TR20’.
Asexual reproduction. ‘TR20’ was first asexually propagated by division in April 1997 in the state of New South Wales, Australia. ‘TR20’ was asexually reproduced again during November 1997 and April 1998 and confirmed to be stable in character. The distinctive characteristics of the inventive variety, ‘TR20’, have remained stable and true to type from generation to generation through successive cycles of asexual reproduction including vegetative division and micropropagation.
‘TR20’ has a clumping habit, green foliage with red basal shoots and red-green lower leaf areas, which changes to a reddish-green foliage in cooler seasons, with red leaf margins. In the Spring, ‘TR20’ leaf color is a yellow-green colour with some red leaf margins and red basal shoots and red-green lower leaf areas. ‘TR20’ has a large flower cluster, with blue flowers.